Pro-gun control group holds march, rally in New York City

NEW YORK (AP) -- A gun control group formed in the wake of last month's massacre at a Connecticut elementary school marched across the Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall on Monday to call on Congress to follow New York's lead and enact stricter limits on weapons and ammunition purchases.

One Million Moms for Gun Control said the event was inspired by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s message of nonviolence.

A cab driver drove by beeping and flashing a peace sign as some 300 marchers from the city's five boroughs and several other states, including Michigan and Florida, crossed the bridge.

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Valerie Wright of Manhattan said she would have felt "negligent" if she didn't attend.

"Even though we just passed legislation here, it's more far reaching than just our state. Sometimes showing up is the best thing you can do," she said.

Jennifer Edwards, from Ann Arbor, Mich., said she was not against guns but wants a nationwide assault weapon ban.

"If the man at Sandy Hook had a regular gun instead of an assault weapon half of those children would be alive," she said of the Newtown, Conn., tragedy. "You can never stop people from doing crazy things, but if you can minimize it, if you can save one life, isn't it worth it?"

The group's founder, Shannon Watts, was scheduled to speak at the rally, as was City Councilwoman Letitia James and Jackie Rowe Adams, founder of Harlem Mothers Stop Another Violent End.

The group wants Congress to pass President Barack Obama's sweeping gun control proposals to reduce gun violence.

Those include a ban on assault weapons and large magazines and closing loopholes that allow some gun sales without background checks.

One Million Moms for Gun Control also is pushing for boundaries on how much ammunition can be purchased and limits on the scope of concealed weapons laws.

Tony-nominated actress Montego Glover will sing "26 Names," a song which written by Tony-winning composer Jason Robert Brown in tribute to the 20 first-graders and six school officials who died in shootings last month at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

Bennett Windheim of Manhattan brought his wife and son.

"This is a signal in support of what the president wants to do and sends a signal to legislators across the country that there's support for the president's initiatives."

Last week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the nation's toughest assault weapon and magazine restrictions.

One Million Moms for Gun Control also planned a gun control march in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 26.